My interview with Rosi Hollinbeck

A Miracle Under the Christmas Tree

Rosi Hollinbeck is an SCBWI critique group coordinator, a reviewer for the Sacramento Book Review, and a writer.  She has a blog you can visit /http://rosihollinbeckthewritestuff.blogspot.com/ which she has named "The Write Stuff".  Recently, she also had a short story, entitled Christmas without Snow, published in A MIRACLE UNDER THE CHRISTMAS TREE, which was edited by Jennifer Basye Sander.  I've read her lovely story, it actually caused me to tear up a little.  If you're thinking of a special book to give someone this year, I can recommend this one.  I asked her a few questions about her writing life and what it's like to be a reviewer.   

Rosi, please tell us how you began writing?  What was your first piece ever published?

I have always written, but didn’t have the time to get serious about it until I retired six years ago. A friend sent me some information on the Sacramento Writer’s Conference. While there, I met a nice group of people who invited me to join a critique group. We were all beginners and grew together. I was the only one writing for children. I found SCBWI, joined, and moved to a critique closer to home with other children’s writers. I finally had my first success early last year right after I had decided maybe I was wasting my time. (Isn’t that just the way?) I won first place in the Foster City Writers’ Contest in the children’s division for my historical short story, “Helen’s Home Run.” I actually had that accepted later by Stories for Children, but they went out of business before I got a contract. (sigh)

I attended some Highlights Foundation workshops and met some of the editors. I don’t believe anyone can sell something to the Highlights entities just by having been there, but I do think you have the chance to hear from the editors what they need, and that can be very helpful.  I sold two action rhymes to High Five magazine, then a story, then an article to Highlights. None has been published yet, but the article is scheduled to be in the March 2013 issue of Highlights.

Last summer I placed a short memoir in an anthology, A Miracle Under the Christmas Tree, which was released in September. That is actually my first published writing. It’s pretty exciting to be able to hold it in my hand and see my story in print. I also have a story-poem in a British anthology called Fifty Funny Poems for Children that was released in November. The good news is I am an internationally published author. The bad news is you have to be in the  British Isles to order it! But you can see my name in the list of authors on Thynks Publications website: http://www.thynkspublications.co.uk/children-s-books. I do have some copies coming to me, but the postage is as much as the books!

Tell us about your job at the SCBWI critique group coordinator.  

My job as critique group coordinator is much more time consuming than I ever expected. However, our assistant RA, Catherine Meyer, has been an incredible help. I am setting up some new systems that should make things work more smoothly. Maybe you should ask me this question a year from now! I have met some wonderful people and have been successful helping some groups form, so I feel I’m doing some good.

I understand you review books for the Sacramento Book Review.  How did you start reviewing and about how many books a year are you able to review?  

I started writing book reviews for the Sacramento Book Review about a year and a half ago. It really helps keep my head in the game. I read a LOT of books, almost all children’s books. I focus on picture books and middle grade, but now and then will grab a YA. One of the best things about doing reviews is the discipline of hitting those word counts. I have to hit between 175 and 200 words. (This from a woman who can’t do a grocery list in under a thousand words.) And believe me, it’s not easy doing this for picture books. Sometimes a book will have less than fifty words, and I have to write two hundred words about it.

I set myself a goal this year to write a hundred reviews. I checked recently on the site recently and it looks like I might actually hit 150 this year! This also has given me the chance to not only review a lot of books on my blog, but I have nice books for giveaways on my blog. It has certainly helped my traffic. I’m regularly getting between 700 and 800 hits a month on my blog and that makes me happy.

Without giving too much away, can you tell us about what you're working on now?

My work-in-progress is a middle-grade historical. It is 1926 and young Freddy’s father says his family can no longer afford to keep him. He is forced to leave and learn to support himself. He and his best friend, Rudy, strike out for California to make their own ways in the world and search for Freddy’s uncle who may hold the answer to Freddy ever being able to return home. They have many adventures and encounter everything from bank robbers to night riders to poisonous snakes, as well as people both terrible and kind along the way, but Freddy must finish the journey alone when Rudy suffers a terrible accident. He learns a great deal about himself and the concepts of home and family along the way.

My father was sent away in 1926 at age ten by his father. His journey was the seed for the book, but most of it is pure fiction. It was great fun to write. I’m on the agent hunt now. I also have some picture book manuscripts I’m shopping as well as a poetry collection I’m working on with a critique partner that is just about ready to be submitted. Fingers crossed!